Did You Know...
...that several people are credited with the invention of the flush toilet? Most people have heard of Thomas Crapper (1837-1910), the sanitary engineer who invented the valve-and-siphon arrangement that made the modern toilet possible. Another claimant to "the throne" was British inventor Alexander Cumming who patented a toilet in 1775. Then there's a nameless Minoan (a native of ancient Crete) who lived 4,000 years ago who supposedly was ahead of his time and created the first flush toilet!
PatentStorm News
Make the Most of Our Site
See this month's Top Inventors and Most Cited Patents.
Stay on top of the latest innovations by subscribing to an RSS feed.
Registered users: Manage your profile.
| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8021501 | Single point incremental forming of metallic materials using applied direct current A method for forming a sheet metal component using an electric current passing through the component is provided. The method can include providing a single point incremental forming, the machine operable to perform a plurality of single point incremental deformation... | 09/20/2011 |
| 7220327 | Kick-down drum material and method of manufacturing the same Disclosed is a material of a kick-down drum comprising fine ferrite and microdispersion spheroidized cementite for an automobile also disclosed is a method for manufacturing the kick-down drum material. The kick-down drum of this invention can greatly improve harden... | 05/22/2007 |
| 7090733 | Metallic glasses with crystalline dispersions formed by electric currents Metallic glasses of superior mechanical and magnetic properties are manufactured by annealing the glasses under the influence of an electric current to convert the glass to a composite that includes crystallites, preferably nanocrystallites, dispersed through an amo... | 08/15/2006 |
| 6903296 | Method of making a metallic component A metallic component is made by heating with subsequent hardening by rapid cooling. In the component unhardened regions remain, in that the component is electrically resistant heated and defined regions, either by partial resistance heating of the other regions, by ... | 06/07/2005 |
| 6855217 | Method of baking treatment of steel product parts The present invention relates to a method of baking treatment of steel product parts using a high frequency or ultra-high frequency for preventing delayed fracture from occurring due to diffusive hydrogen occluded in steel parts, for example, screws, bolts and the l... | 02/15/2005 |
| 6576068 | Method of producing stainless steels having improved corrosion resistance A method for producing a stainless steel with improved corrosion resistance includes homogenizing at least a portion of an article of a stainless steel including chromium, nickel, and molybdenum and having a PREN of at least 50, as calculated b... | 06/10/2003 |
| 6398881 | Wear-resistant camshaft and method of producing the same The invention concerns a wear-resistant camshaft and a method of producing the same. Objects in which the application of the invention is possible and useful are all cast-iron parts which are subject to wear as a result of lubricated friction. The wear-re... | 06/04/2002 |
| 6398885 | Method and apparatus for preventing cracking of the shank junction of die blocks A method and apparatus for tempering the shank portion only of die blocks which comprises subjecting the shank portion of a die block or other large metal part to electrical energy derived from induction heating or infrared heating to a controlled depth, ... | 06/04/2002 |
| 6284068 | Metal processing utilizing electric potential When an electrical potential is applied to a metal or a metallic solution or a metal that is close to the melting point or a metal that is molten the electric charges are either drawn off and the metal has a high positive potential or a surfeit of electri... | 09/04/2001 |
| 6235131 | System for heat treating coiled springs Steel springs are cold coiled, then hardened by electrical resistance heating, and then quenched. The invention may be used to produce hardened springs with uniform mechanical and physical characteristics, fine grain microstructures, and high fatigue resi... | 05/22/2001 |
| 6166360 | Heat treating of metallurgic article with varying aspect ratios This invention provides methods for rapidly heating a metal part of varying thickness. In general, the invention provides methods comprising heating the thicker section(s) of the part by induction heating and the thinner section(s) by resistance heating. ... | 12/26/2000 |
| 5859404 | Method and apparatus for plasma processing a workpiece in an enveloping plasma A plasma heating apparatus for heating a workpiece includes a chamber of sufficient size to receive a workpiece therein and a source of a reduced gas pressure within the chamber of from about 0.01 to about 100 millitorr. The plasma heating apparatus furth... | 01/12/1999 |
| 5776270 | Method for reforming a container and container produced thereby A method for reforming the generally cylindrical sidewalls of aluminum containers is disclosed. The method produces highly expanded and/or contoured container sidewalls which provide a distinctive appearance in comparison with cylindrical containers havin... | 07/07/1998 |
| 5700335 | Process and device for regulating the calorific output in a continuous annealing and processing line for continuously cast metal products A process and device are disclosed for regulating the annealing power in at least one annealing section of a continuous annealing and processing line for continuously cast metal products. The speed of the cast products (D) passing through the continuous a... | 12/23/1997 |
| 5672217 | Method for producing machine elements of steel In a method for producing machine elements of steel having a carbon content of 0.3 to 1.1%, blanks are heated to austenitizing temperature and austenitized, quenched for the formation of martensite, heated from room temperature to a maximum tempering temp... | 09/30/1997 |
| 5645943 | Electrified object contact component An electrified object contact material characterized in that an oxide film formed in a high purity oxidizing atmosphere with a thickness from several tens to 100 Å is formed at least in a section directly contacting an electrified object. By using the co... | 07/08/1997 |
| 5514229 | Method of producing transparent and other electrically conductive materials The present invention pertains to a method of controlling the microstructure and service properties of electrically conductive transparent and other materials by passing an electrical current through the materials while simultaneously employing an additio... | 05/07/1996 |
| 5256216 | Controlled resistive heat treatment for a continuously moving zircaloy sheet Zircaloy 2 or 4 strip is heat treated in the beta range, followed by rapid cooling by passing the strip between a first and second roller pair, each roller pair having two oppositely disposed rollers gripping the strip. Each roller pair is connected to a ... | 10/26/1993 |
| 5124517 | Method of induction-hardening machine components An induction-hardening machine for the contour hardening of cross-axis, intersecting-axis and nonintersecting-axis gears such as hypoid gears includes a programmable logic control unit, a source of quench liquid and a high-frequency induction generator wh... | 06/23/1992 |
| 5080726 | Directional solidification processing of alloys using an applied electric field A method is provided for obtaining an alloy having an ordered microstructure which comprises the steps of heating the central portion of the alloy under uniform temperature so that it enters a liquid phase while the outer portions remain solid, applying a... | 01/14/1992 |
| 5073212 | Method of surface hardening of turbine blades and the like with high energy thermal pulses, and resulting product A process for improving the fatigue and stress resistance of transformation hardenable metal turbine blades and other workpieces. The metal is preferably selected from the alloy groups Fe-C, Fe-30%Ni, Fe-12%Cr, and titanium-based alloys. The process inclu... | 12/17/1991 |
| 4995919 | Method and apparatus for parting a deck of amorphous alloy ribbons A method and apparatus for parting a deck of amorphous alloy ribbons in one operation is disclosed. Force is applied to a deck of ribbons to place it under tension. A localized zone in the deck is compressed and rapidly heated to the softening temperature... | 02/26/1991 |
| 4959107 | Method and apparatus for treating ladder rungs for forming assembly with ladder rails A method and apparatus for treating preselected areas of metallic ladder rungs wherein such metallic spaced rungs are moved in a path substantially normal to the longitudinal axes of the rungs with preselected areas of the spaced rungs passing through a c... | 09/25/1990 |
| 4793870 | Continuous treatment of cold-rolled carbon high manganese steel Cold-rolled, non-microalloyed carbon manganese steel (0.11% to 0.18% C, 1.20% to 1.40% Mn) is preheated at 700° to 1000° F., heated to 1500° to 1575° F., and quenched to 800° to 950° F. in a continuous process to develop minimum yield strength ... | 12/27/1988 |
| 4793869 | Continuous treatment of cold-rolled carbon manganese steel Cold-rolled, non-microalloyed carbon manganese steel (0.04% to 0.15% C, 0.25% to 0.70% Mn) is preheated at 700° to 1000° F., heated to 1625° to 1725° F., and quenched to 650° to 750° F. in a continuous process to develop minimum yield strength ... | 12/27/1988 |
| 4623401 | Heat treatment with an autoregulating heater Apparatus and process for selectively heat treating at least a portion of an article in the field with autoregulated heating. The autoregulated heating is provided by a heater including at least a first magnetic material disposed along the portion of the ... | 11/18/1986 |
| 4574016 | Method of treating steel for a vehicle suspension spring having a good sag-resistance A steel for use in a vehicle suspension spring having a good sag-resistance comprising by weight 0.80% carbon, 1.50-2.50% silicon, 0.50-1.50% manganese, a member or members selected from a group consisting of 0.05-0.50% vanadium, 0.05-0.50% niobium and 0.... | 03/04/1986 |
| 4533402 | Method of manufacturing a hollow stabilizer A hollow stabilizer manufactured from a material obtained by adding a minute amount (0.001-0.01% by weight) of boron to either a carbon steel tubing having a relatively low carbon concentration of 0.20-0.35% for mechanical and structural purposes or to a ... | 08/06/1985 |
| 4527987 | Sprocket wheel and method of making same A sprocket wheel for mining applications comprises a forged, austenitized and oil-quenched body which consists essentially of: 0.7 to 1.0% by weight manganese, 0.7 to 2.2% by weight chromium, 0.3 to 0.6% by weight molybdenum, 0.5 to 2.2% by weight nickel, up to 0.4... | 07/09/1985 |
| 4457789 | Process for annealing steels A process for the annealing of hypoeutectoid steels wherein a steel is rapidly heated to a temperature above the upper transformation temperature of the steel to convert the steel to austenite and carbides, followed by cooling of the steel. The rate of he... | 07/03/1984 |
| 4437901 | Method and apparatus for improved heat treatment of aluminum alloy rod Solution heat treatment of a rapidly advancing intermediate metallic product (26) is accomplished by preheating the product in a first zone (27) by conventional means, a great length of the product is maintained at the desired temperature in a second zone... | 03/20/1984 |
| 4404047 | Process for the improved heat treatment of steels using direct electrical resistance heating A process for the energy efficient heat treatment of steels wherein a steel workpiece is rapidly heated to a temperature above the A3 temperature of the steel to convert the steel to austenite, the workpiece is then rapidly quenched in a liquid... | 09/13/1983 |
| 4369074 | Method of producing bellows from metal alloys A method of producing bellows from metal alloys comprises reeling a tubular workpiece to reduce the wall thickness thereof under volume deformation, heating the reeled tubular workpiece at a rate of 100 to 800° C. per sec by passing electric current ther... | 01/18/1983 |
| 4215259 | Surface hardening of metals using electric currents Method and apparatus for modifying the surface properties of a metal part made of a metal which changes its properties with heating to a transformation temperature and subsequent cooling in which method electric current having a frequency of at least 3000... | 07/29/1980 |
| 4186039 | Method of stabilizing springs In a method of treating a coil spring to improve its performance and reliability when operating at elevated temperatures, the spring is first stressed by applying a load of preselected magnitude and then, while the load is maintained, the spring is heated... | 01/29/1980 |
| 4124416 | Process for the heat treatment of coils of metallic strip, preferably of aluminum and aluminum alloys A process for the heat treatment of coils of aluminum and aluminum alloys in which lubricants applied to the surfaces of the metal strip, the usual oxide layer and a spacing between turns formed during coiling permit the application of a voltage across th... | 11/07/1978 |
| 4088511 | Steels combining toughness and machinability A method for strengthening of carbon and low alloy steels and steels produced thereby wherein a carbon or low alloy steel is partially austenitized to produce a ferrite-austenite mixture, the resulting ferrite-austenite mixture is quenched to an intermedi... | 05/09/1978 |
| 4081296 | Direct-current electrical heat-treatment of continuous metal sheets in a protective atmosphere The heat treatment of a continuous band or sheet of metal as the same travels through a plurality of stages in a protective atmosphere, between conveying rollers, by applying direct-current electricity to the rollers for inclusion of the travelling sheet ... | 03/28/1978 |
| 4040872 | Process for strengthening of carbon steels A process for the strengthening of carbon steels wherein a hypoeutectoid carbon steel workpiece, preferably in the shape of a rod or a bar, is rapidly heated to a temperature completely within the austenite region at a rate sufficient to minimize grain gr... | 08/09/1977 |
| 3986898 | Method for strengthening metallic materials liable to be subjected to internal oxidation A method for strengthening metallic materials liable to be subjected to internal oxidation, characterized in that said metallic material is strengthened by heating the metallic material liable to be subjected to internal oxidation up to an internal oxidat... | 10/19/1976 |
